After a day of relaxation at home we headed out to Metropolitan Grill for dinner. I had very high expectations for this restaurant, which, to many, is one of the two top steak houses in Seattle (the other one being El Gaucho)
We took a taxi to the restaurant. The place was packed. Perhaps because it was Mother's Day but Metropolitan Grill has always been difficult to get in on weekends. We waited over 15 minutes to be seated even though we had a 7:15 reservation. We were seated at a beautiful green velour upholstered booth in a wood paneled room. It reminded me so much of the chop houses we had enjoyed in the past when we lived in the Chicago area. I was happy. After asking for the wine list we were handed a beautiful book with over 2000+ selections. Amazing! Everything from Leonetti to Petrus. Washington to South Africa. Wines by the glass. By the half bottle. An amazing array of dessert wines. Bourdeaux, California and Washington wines best of the best were there. Lots of little gems, in all price ranges.
Our sommelier, Barbara, was a joy! Fun, friendly and encouraging. I spotted a Richard Kinssies wine I remembered reading about on the Seattle P.I. last winter. A bottle of 2002 High Altitude, an Argentinian Malbec (65%), Cabernet Sauvignon (35%) blend. It ended up being a great choice with our steak. Not to mention very affordable and delicious! (less than $30) Who knew? We drank 95% of the bottle.
We ordered a French Onion Soup and Lobster Bisque. The onion soup was good but not great. Not sweet but flavorful. Call me crazy but French Onion soup outside of France or the French Islands does not taste as good, no matter who makes it. :-) The last time we had it was at Le Grand Colbert in Paris last month. It was sweet. The onions were many and caramelized to perfection. The broth was beautifully done. But enough of Paris and back to Seattle. ;-)
The bisque was served in a darling porcelain covered dish with a garnish of foam and chives but...what happened? Where was the lobster? It would had been perfect had it contained at least one chunk of lobster. I definitely prefer Flying Fish Lobster Bisque to Metropolitan Grill's any day. Next time I'll stick to my old standard appetizer: oysters.
We opted for the New York Strips. Petite. 12 ounces each. Still a lot of meat. Oh well! Garlic mashed potatoes and baked potato with all the fixings. Asparagus with Bernaise sauce. They brought a bit of their peppercorn sauce and "Concierge" mushrooms, a house treat for reservations made through the concierge. "No charge", said our very nice server. Just "a thank you from the restaurant when hotel or building concierges arrange the reservations". That was nice, we thought, so we gladly accepted the dish! These were stewed mushrooms in a light tomato sauce. Cute but not extraordinary and definitely not something I would have ordered.
The mashed potatoes were lukewarm, almost cold. The server offered to take them back and replace them. I dislike sending things back but he was so nice I agreed. The steak, medium rare, was not what I had expected. Black and Blue this was not. It seemed of inferior quality to the ones we cook at home on the grill. And ours come from Larry's or Whole Foods! At that moment I wished I was at El Gaucho enjoying their Chateaubriand instead.
We debated over giving the Bananas Foster or their dessert wine list a go. Coffee perhaps? Not. Instead, we asked for the bill and left with a doggie bag. Most of my dinner was in the box.
The damage? Dinner for two was almost $200. This included the bottle of wine ($27) and tip (20%). No dessert. No coffee. We walked home. The weather was lovely and the city was peaceful. When we got home I looked at the bill. They had charged us for the "complimentary" mushrooms. $9.
Metropolitan Grill: Best steak in town? Perhaps it was an off night, but frankly, I don't think so.
820 2nd Avenue
Seattle, WA
206-624-3287
Cuisine: Upscale Steak House
Full bar
Dress: Casual elegance
All major credit cards
Valet parking available after 5:00pm
Hours of Operation:
Lunch: Mon-Fri 11:00am-3:00pm
Dinner: Mon-Thurs 5:00pm-10:30pm
Fri 5:00pm-11:00pm
Sat 4:00pm-11:00pm
Sun 4:00pm-10:00pm
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